COLUMN: After a World Cup to remember, what now?

For the past month, we've been glued to our TVs and mobile devices, taking in as much action as possible. But now that the World Cup is over, where can you turn to get your soccer fix?

By Ryan Wood

Wood’s World Cup tour abruptly ended the day my last column came out, when the U.S. fell to Belgium in the Round of 16, but it was fun while it lasted. I spent the next rounds and the final watching the games from home.

There were several highs during this World cup, including Colombia’s resurgence and Tim Cahill’s wonder strike against the Netherlands, and a few lows, such as Luis Suarez enjoying a mid-game snack of Giorgio Chiellini’s shoulder and bogus flopping by nearly every team at some point. One thing you can’t deny is the excitement this tournament provided, not to mention the 171 goals scored. That’s almost three goals per game. There were only three or four games that were complete borefests, but the rest were exciting, some edge-of-the-seat thrillers.

So what now? I think it’s safe to say that the World Cup generated hundreds upon hundreds of new soccer fans. It may technically be the No. 5 sport in the U.S., but in 10 years, I see soccer vaulting the National Hockey League and competing with the National Basketball League in terms of number of fans, viewership, etc. Even just hearing traditionally non-soccer fans saying they tuned into a couple matches is progress.

A couple questions I’ve been asked by newfound soccer fans is: on what teams do these guys play and how can I see them. A majority play every weekend on channels you may never knew you had on cable TV. If you don’t have cable, once in a while, you’ll get to catch a match on NBC, ABC, and FOX.

The NBC Sports Network has exclusive rights to the Barclay’s Premier League, and each matchday, you can watch every single game either on TV or via its mobile app. ESPN3 streams German Bundesliga games, and beIN Sports is the nation’s home to Serie A (Italy), La Liga (Spain), and Ligue 1 (France), as well as some second-tier matches in England. ESPN has Major League Soccer (MLS), and FOX Sports currently owns the rights to Champions League games.

Soon, you have a chance to see some of the best players from this year’s World Cup right in your own backyard.

AS Roma of Serie A will play Liverpool of the Premier League next week at Fenway Park. Both teams feature players who took part in the 2014 World Cup, including Brazil’s Maicon, Ivorian international Gervinho, Italy’s Daniele De Rossi, and Bosnia’s Miralem Pjanić.

Across the country this summer, several teams will play in the International Champions Cup, and the games will air on FOX Sports. Cristiano Ronaldo’s Real Madrid, Wayne Rooney’s Manchester United, and Mario Balotelli’s AC Milan are three of the eight teams competing.

Bayern Munich of Germany’s Bundesliga play the MLS all-stars Aug. 6 in Portland. Germany hero Mario Götze, who scored the game-winning goal in the World Cup final against Argentina, plays for Bayern Munich, in addition to Bastian Schweinsteiger and Netherlands star Arjen Robben. Andre Schürrle, who set up Götze’s goal, wears the colors of Chelsea in the Premier League. Everyone’s favorite, Lionel Messi, along with Brazil’s Neymar, and Spain’s Andrés Iniesta play for La Liga giants Barcelona. Ronaldo dons the jersey of Barcelona’s biggest rivals, Real Madrid. And, in my opinion, the best player in this year’s World Cup despite not winning the Golden Ball, Colombia’s James Rodriguez, played for AS Monaco in France’s Ligue 1, however Real Madrid put in a serious bid to snag the star striker before the season begins.

MLS gets a lot of criticism for not begin as strong as leagues overseas, and in some aspects, that’s a fair argument, however the talent in MLS rivals the best leagues in the world. Seven of the U.S. starters against Belgium call MLS home, as well as Brazil keeper Julio Cesar (Toronto FC), Honduras forward Jerry Bengtson (New England Revolution), and Australia’s Tim Cahill (New York Red Bulls).

If you’re craving more soccer now that the World Cup is over, there is plenty to keep you busy. MLS runs through October, and the Revs still play host to Toronto FC (with Cesar and U.S. midfielder Michael Bradley). Next month, the Premier League, Bundesliga, and Serie A all kick off their seasons.

If you want to start following a team, one to call your own, the key is to pick one and stick with it. Show your loyalty through thick and thin. The go-to teams to jump on their bandwagon include Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Manchester United (some consider United the Boston Red Sox of the Premier League. Being a Chelsea supporter, I think of them as the Yankees). If you’re not a bandwagon jumper, my advice is to pick a side that has your a favorite player from the World Cup, or go with a team that has family roots (I have cousins in Munich and in Bologna, so I could’ve gone with Bayern Munich in Bundesliga or Bologna in Serie A, but Chelsea’s style and players attracted me the most).

U.S. ‘keeper Tim Howard plays for Everton in the Premier League. In my opinion, that’s the team to choose. Blue-collar, hard-working players on a club that has relatively successful seasons each year. Belgium forward Romelu Lukaku (at least as of now) still plays for Everton, as does England’s Phil Jagielka.

Hopefully you enjoyed the 2014 World Cup and are yearning for more soccer. Even though we have to wait another four years for the World Cup, there is plenty to keep you busy until then.

Ryan Wood is the sports editor of the Marshfield Mariner, Norwell Mariner, and Pembroke Mariner & Express. Follow him on Twitter @RWsports or email him at rwood@wickedlocal.com

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